Sydney’s $7.5m Melbourne Cup rival

The Golden Eagle, a new and unique race with prizemoney second only to The Everest in Australian racing, is the centrepiece of an expansion of the Sydney spring carnival.

Racing NSW and Australian Turf Club this morning announced a series of significant spring carnival race programming chances including the introduction of the $7.5 million Golden Eagle, to be run over 1500m at Rosehill Gardens on November 2 next year.

The Golden Eagle, which is open to four-year-olds only, has more prizemoney than the $7.3 million Melbourne Cup and complements the $14 million The Everest, giving Sydney's spring carnival now the two richest horse races in the southern hemisphere.

Of the $7.5 million Golden Eagle prizemoney, 10% will be donated to charity. The connections of each runner will nominate a charity that has been accredited with Racing NSW to receive 10% of the prizemoney won by their horse. Accordingly, a total of $750,000 will go to charity.

For example, as prizemoney for first is $4.1 million, the charity which has the winning horse would receive $410,000.

"The Golden Eagle is the first feature race on the Australian (turf) calendar exclusively for four-year-old horses," said Racing NSW Chairman Russell Balding AO.

"We believe the Golden Eagle will be attractive in retaining our top three-year olds to race on as four-year olds and benefit the racing industry, underpinning the strength of racing in NSW and Australia more broadly.

"The Golden Eagle strengthens our Spring Carnival and provides a further highlight for Spring racing in Sydney. It also opens up the possibility of attracting runners from diverse form lines including The Everest, Sydney Stakes and the Epsom Handicap.''

The Golden Eagle will also be the third leg of the new "Golden Slam" at Rosehill, with a $5 million bonus offered to any horse that can win the Golden Slipper at two, the Golden Rose at three and the Golden Eagle as a four-year-old.

"The Golden Eagle is an exciting development, which will bring together the best sprinter-milers of their generation at an age when they have fully matured," said ATC Chairman Matt McGrath.

"We are excited by the Golden Eagle, which alongside Rosehill's other great races in the Golden Slipper and Golden Rose, creates a 'Golden Slam' that only champions can dream of.''

Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'landys said the Golden Eagle prizemoney will be funded entirely from new revenues, rather than drawing on existing revenues of the NSW thoroughbred racing industry. This new revenue stream will have a separate announcement.

"I am delighted that this enables the Golden Eagle to be added as an important feature race at Rosehill and will also distribute $750,000 to charities,'' V'landys said.

"We want to bring another major event to the western suburbs of Sydney. In the Golden Eagle, we have provided a race that is also a celebration of the west of Sydney.

"Now having the second richest race on turf in the world, Sydney's west has the perfect day to celebrate."

The Golden Eagle headlines changes to the program for spring racing in Sydney which will feature a race that highlights each Saturday meeting through to November 9.

This also includes a new $1 million three-year-old and a $1 million two-year-old race highlighting Saturday race programs in October and November.

The new $1 million Bondi Stakes will be run at Royal Randwick for three-year olds over a distance of 1600m on October 26.

The race provides a new spring target for three-year olds in Sydney and follows on from races such as the Golden Rose and Flight Stakes.

The Golden Gift, 1100m for two-year olds which was first run by the ATC in 2015 will now be run for $1 million prizemoney on 9 November 2019. This race provides a focal point for two-year-old racing in the Spring, with the prizemoney on offer enough to ensure that the first and second placegetters will gain a berth in the Golden Slipper.

Should one horse win the Golden Slipper, Golden Rose and Golden Eagle connections will pocket a $5 million Golden Bonus.